Fil-Am Oscar winner Ronnie del Carmen, who co-directed and co-wrote “Inside Out,” wore a piña tuxedo by Hollywood Filipino designer Oliver Tolentino at the 88th Academy Awards on Sunday, Feb. 28. “Inside Out” won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature Film. Co-director Pete Docter and producer Jonas Rivera collected the award.
Del Carmen personally was nominated for Best Original Screenplay for the same film, along with four others. The script was based on a story del Carmen created with Docter.
Going into the awards night, “Inside Out” was favored to win best animated film, but it was a different story in the original screenplay category, as “Inside Out” was competing with “Straight Outta Compton,” “Bridge of Spies,” “Ex Machina,” and “Spotlight,” which won. While it’s often a cliché, it really was a win for del Carmen just to be nominated in this category with all of the live action films.
Del Carmen, who previously worked on “Up,” chose a midnight blue Oliver Tolentino piña tuxedo to wear to the awards. His wife, Tess del Carmen, also chose a Tolentino creation, opting for an emerald green lace mermaid gown.
Tolentino is known for promoting Philippine eco fabrics, especially in Hollywood. Del Carmen is the first Oscar nominee to wear piña to the Academy Awards. Nominee Matthew Libatique wore an abaca tie with his Tolentino tuxedo in 2011 when he was nominated for cinematography for Black Swan. Celebrities to wear Oliver’s piña outfits in Hollywood have included Carrie Underwood, Emmy Rossum, Jessica Alba, Maria Menounos, Sophia Bush, Tara Lipinski, and Maggie Grace.
Tolentino’s creations are lucky for animated films (and for himself). At the 86th Academy Awards, the designer became the first Filipino in 53 years to dress an Oscar winner when Jennifer Lee won for Frozenwhile wearing his black gown. For more info: www.OliverTolentino.com.
